media release 1
Image Credit- Jasmine Targett, Crumbling Ecologies, 2011. Hand cast porcelain.
Exhibition at Craft Victoria: April 26th – June 9th 2012
Crumbling Ecologies: the impact of impending economic forces on Melbourne’s art and culture.
The Crumbling Ecologies Project uses the ecological conundrum as a metaphor to discuss crumbling diversity and sustainability across Victoria’s diminishing arts schools. The works presented critically address how the economic climate has affected the infrastructures that support artistic practice in Victoria, commenting on how the culture of learning is changing.
Crumbling Ecology is a large collaborative installation made by practicing artists who wish to comment on how the closure of Melbourne’s craft studios will impact their future careers.
The installation will feature thousands of hand made geranium leaves that upon closer inspection appear on the brink of crumbling, embodying the story of their makers. Viewers will be invited to take a leaf for free or pay what you think it is worth.
-Why Geraniums?
In many parts of the world there are species of geranium that are critically endangered or extinct. The garden geranium is on the Australian National Heritage Trust’s Alert List for Environmental Weeds that threaten biodiversity and cause environmental damage. Soon to become a huge pest to Victoria’s native flora and fauna, they are one of the most popular commercially sold garden plants. In Victoria, geraniums sit ambiguously between a plant and a weed, deriving connotations of being out-dated and old fashioned. One of the key arguments used to justify the closure of media based studios including glass, ceramics and metals is that they have become out-dated and no longer relevant to contemporary arts practice and research.
Geraniums signify the economic impact on the ecological equilibrium and the importance of preserving craft as a diverse form of contemporary arts practice within Victoria.
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